


Charmingly Yours

by Miraphina Atherton (mew_tsubaki)



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Aberforth is Tired, Age Difference, F/M, One-Sided Attraction, Pre-Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Pre-Relationship, Somebody Save Him, and tell Augusta to behave, waaaaaaay back in the day...
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-09
Updated: 2019-08-09
Packaged: 2020-08-13 22:01:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 752
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20181400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mew_tsubaki/pseuds/Miraphina%20Atherton
Summary: On a hazy summer day, a barkeep watches over his customers...





	Charmingly Yours

**Author's Note:**

> The Harry Potter characters belong to J.K. Rowling, not to me. Read, review, and enjoy!

The door to the Hog's Head slammed open, and in walked a very angry witch.

This was not the first time Aberforth had seen her, and he doubted it would be the last. He'd thought as much the first time she had stormed in, about two years ago, after her O.W.L. examinations. This time, she probably was irritated by her N.E.W.T.s.

"ARGH!" she growled as she sat down at the counter. She buried her head in her crossed arms and took several breaths, the maroon of her Gryffindor tie turning darker as it absorbed her angry tears.

"You're scaring off my customers," Aberforth told her once her breathing evened.

Augusta Longbottom picked up her head and glared at him with unspectacular brown eyes. "What customers?" She was right, though; she'd scared the only other person in the Hog's Head.

Aberforth sighed and shook his head, placing a glass of water beside her on the counter. He wiped some dishes with an old rag as she downed the liquid.

"Can't you give me anything stronger?"

He raised his eyebrows and brushed his light brown hair over his shoulder. "You're…"

"Seventeen, legal to drink firewhiskey," Augusta huffed. "I'll have you know I'm almost eighteen, so give me the good stuff, barkeep."

Aberforth frowned. "Miss Longbottom…" He hated this. The last time he'd been able to speak to a witch, his sister had still been alive. Now here he was, what? Scared of a girl who looked as though she had failed her exams? In the end, he pulled out a glass and poured her a measure of the fiery drink. The action humbled her, and she nodded her thanks. When he continued to stare, she correctly assumed that he wanted to know why she was there.

"My N.E.W.T.s went fine…better than my O.W.L.s, actually." Augusta cupped her cheek in her palm, a pose that reminded Aberforth of those old Muggle movie posters from the '20s where the girl had husky eyes and close-cropped hair, and a distant, independent expression that all men found alluring.

The wizard shook himself of the thought. Augusta Longbottom was as independent as they came.

"But that little witch…!" Augusta cursed and gnashed her teeth. "Ugh, there's this Gryffindor two years below me, Minerva McGonagall, who took her O.W.L.s, and I overheard her talking with friends about how _brilliantly_ she did—remarking that she knew what not to do for Charms because no one had so fantastically failed at Charms like _me_!" Augusta's cheeks burned red, her anger getting the better of her. "And of course my brother, Algie, can't help but agree with his classmate. ARGH!" she finished with a huff.

Aberforth opened his mouth, closed it, and thought. He was so used to keeping quiet and not interacting much with others that he felt he was at a loss as to what to say.

But Augusta noticed him. "Well? Aren't you going to say something?" It came out harshly, but Aberforth could tell she was dismayed and looking for reassurance. Funny how he had come to learn her expressions in two years' worth of visits to the tavern.

"…you can't do charms?"

It slipped out, though he was curious about it. Augusta's face puffed up in annoyance—but she amazingly took a breath and calmed herself. "_No_, I _can_ do charms…I just test horribly when it comes to them." She sighed and stared back at him. "Oh, Mr. Aberforth… It sucks to be bullied by someone younger than me."

He shrugged in response.

Augusta watched him and said, "You know what? …you're right. I should shrug this off. Someday, I'll be on top, and McGonagall will be wishing her interests lie not in Transfiguration but elsewhere. Although, if it were to get out that she fancies Dumbledore the Transfiguration professor…"

Aberforth paused in what he was doing and raised his eyebrows again.

Augusta winked mischievously. "Come now, I'm not that evil…but I'm not above holding the threat over her. You know, it was a good idea, coming here. Thanks for the talk, Mr. Aberforth—and of course for my first firewhiskey." She stood, leaned over the counter to pat him on the cheek, smiled, and left. She showed no signs of ever having cried that afternoon.

Only after Aberforth shook the thought of her pretty smile from his mind did he realize that Augusta hadn't paid for her drink.

**Author's Note:**

> Ahh, cute. :3 I feel as though it's been a while since I'd written something so cute… Anyway, I'm working under the following family tree assumption—Harfang and Callidora had Augusta and Algie, and if we were speaking canon-wise… I think Augusta is hardheaded enough that she'd make her husband take her last name. XD But that doesn't matter if we favor Abe/Augusta here! ;D Oh, and ch. 81 of my drabble collection, you're nobody until somebody loves you, can be read almost as a sequel to this. :] And yes, you can tell I'm a MMAD fan. XD
> 
> Thanks for reading, and please review!
> 
> -mew-tsubaki :3
> 
> 2017 note: *lol* Still a fun little fic, from 2011. I'd love to draw this as a comic sometime… I love the idea of Minerva getting on her nerves while they were young, and I love the idea of young Augusta marching to her own beat. It jives with the canon, older Augusta we see. In editing this, I also debated giving Augusta a different pureblood surname, but I like my 2011 closing A/N's explanation—she would be the kind of witch to make her husband take her name. XD Poor Aberforth has a lot on his plate here…


End file.
